Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Terrie Watch. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Terrie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Parents can play a significant role in affecting how our lives and careers turn out – and so we think it’s important to look back and have conversations about what our parents did that affected us positive (or negatively) so that we can learn from the billions of experiences in each generation. What’s something you feel your parents did right that impacted you positively.
My parents, Dot & Phil Ponder, made it a priority that my siblings and I learn primarily through experiences. We attended Catholic schools that included strong art and music programs, we never missed an outing with our respective Scout troops, and our home was filled with open-ended materials which we were encouraged to explore on a daily basis. One of my most fond childhood memories was of the pretend “store” that we had set up in our garage. My mom would save all of our empty food containers (reusing and recycling before it was cool) and allow us to design and stock our store over and over again. We spend countless hours running our pretend business, learning to work together, sharing ideas, and even perfecting the design of our product spaces. Many years later, I introduced my children to their own pretend store, complete with a cash register that I found at a thrift store!
Over the years, I had the pleasure of watching my Dad develop his second career as an artist, specializing in ink & water color renderings of Nashville landmarks. It was a family affair when it came to setting up and running my Dad’s booth at each of the festivals he participated in. I watched as my Dad interacted with the various customers, listening to their stories and taking interest in their suggestions. He was never too busy to talk to his customers, and that made all the difference. As an artist now myself, I look forward to similar experiences with my customers. My Dad is sincerely honored each time a person purchases a piece of his artwork. I feel exactly the same when a customer buys a piece of my pottery. Like father, like daughter!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I grew up in what people would call an “artsy” family. My siblings and I were always creating, exploring materials, and dabbling in a variety of art forms. My first pottery creation was a pencil holder that I made at Girl Scout camp in 1967. Over the years I had opportunities to “play in the clay” but truly connected with clay during my ceramic classes at The University of Tennessee. Some 20 years later, and with the support of my family, I set up a studio in my home and got back to the art form I loved so much. After developing a line of pottery products that numbered about 15, I licensed my business and started signing up for local festivals. Another 20 years later, Cardinal Lake Pottery products number in excess of 100. I am known for functional pottery which my customers enjoy using in their own homes or giving as gifts. I am most proud of the fact that I have achieved a healthy life/work balance that includes the opportunity to create useful products that make others happy.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
The feedback I have received over the years has been very much the same: your pottery is so useful! My customers know that they can count on me for products that will be taken home, or gifted to a friend or family member, and put immediately to use. Some of my most popular products are brie bakers, quiche dishes, noodle bowls, trivets, sponge keepers, berry bowls, and earring keepers. My customers appreciate the craftsmanship of my work as well as the “earthy” palate of glaze choices. I make it a point to introduce at least one or two new products each year. I often hear these words as a repeat customer enters my festival booth: “So what’s new this year?” A special treat for my festival customers is the selection of a cloth gift bag for each of their pottery purchases. I am well known for those cloth gift bags, which my daughters and I make in our spare time. That small gesture at the end of each sale has brought joy to both me and my customers over the two decades of Cardinal Lake Pottery.
Can you share one of your favorite marketing or sales stories?
It was Mother’s Day weekend 2018. I was wrapping up a successful outdoor show and preparing to pack up when I noticed I had a voicemail. It went like this: “Hi Terrie, this is Jean. We just bought one of the ceramic amplifiers from you this afternoon. I was the lady who talked to you about my mom who has a hearing problem. We just tried it with her phone and it works fantastically! It really solved a big problem for us, so thank you very much.” My mind went immediately to the family I had spent quite of bit of time with, discussing and demonstrating my ceramiphone product. I have learned after 2o years of selling my pottery at festivals that demonstrations are everything. As I recall, I placed my cell phone in the ceramiphone and played some of my favorite folk music (most likely a John Denver tune) and watched for a reaction. Their faces lit up! After a few more minutes of discussion, it was decided that this product would be the perfect Mother’s Day gift. The moment I heard Jean’s message, my eyes filled with tears. An item that I had created on my pottery wheel was going to improve the quality of life for Jean’s mother. To this day, I still have that voicemail on my phone and listen to it on occasion.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.cardinallakepottery.com